Sleep - A Foundational Principle of Health

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Most of us don’t get enough sleep ! We should be getting at least 8 hours sleep every night. Research suggests that we used to get a lot more sleep than we do today. Sleep, rest and recovery is Yin time. It lets the parasympathetic system do its real work; the immune system is highly active during sleep, cleaning up the body, repairing and regenerating cells. Most people who lack sleep tend to recover slower from injuries and illness.

Lack of sleep causes not only tiredness, but it also causes a lack of essential energy which is required to re-build the body after a day of activity. Often, the more tired you get, the more sugar and carbohydrates you crave!

It’s not just about how much sleep we get. It’s also about when we get to sleep. Research shows that the body tends to start fixing and repairing itself at about 10pm at night. Physical repair occurs between 10pm and 2am whereas psychological repair occurs between the hours of 2 and 6 am.

This resembles the cycle of the sun as does the hormonal cycle of the human body (circadian rhythm). So if you stay up late at night watching telly until midnight you are missing half of your physical repair cycle.

As the sun rises, we should begin to wake up as we begin to release ‘get-up-and-go’ hormones. So lie-ins don’t count. Basically, all the biological cycles of the body, including the hormonal cycles, are locked into the cycles of the earth (circadian cycle), the moon (lunar cycle) and the sun (solar cycle). If we don’t get enough quality sleep, not only does your physical system start to breakdown but so does your mental function.

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Disclaimer: We’re all unique! Results vary from person to person depending on their genetics, diet, lifestyle and environment and therefore how quickly you achieve the results you desire can depend upon a variety of factors, thus why we favour the ‘holistic’ approach.